Wilderness Lodge Club Level Trip Quandry

No there are no regular Club Level rooms on any floor other than the 7th floor. The 10 Deluxe rooms on floors 1-5 are the only rooms that have Club Level access by definition beyond the 7th floor.

The confusing item that we have mentioned a couple of time in the tread is that with the reduction of the traditional hotel rooms at the Wilderness Lodge, your are able to add CL access to any room at check-in for $99 per night. There is a limit on the number of additional rooms that can add CL access for any particular day and you can't add CL access prior to your arrival as it is offered on an "as available" offering at check-in at the Front desk.

Dave
 
How often would you be sending the kids by themselves? It seems short sighted to cancel a trip that is so close over this. Do the kids know you are going?
Yes... but we do go multiple times a year and have a few already planned for next year as well. This was just going to be our “splurge” trip
 
I think I was at delux level . 2 queens . We had to move over to Boulder Ridge Villa ( 1 Bedroom) only reason because they didn’t have a 5 Day Window for us to stay whole time .i was sad at 1 st but not anymore love being over at BR. Would stay again next year when we go in October.ive also been at WL & watched them ( being the Elves) put up the amazing tree. Everyone sits around with a drink or Hot Chocolate . It was Midnight but something our Family will never forget. It truly was Magicial .
I would love to see that! Did you just “stumble upon that happening” or did you find out when they were going to do it?
 
Is it possible you could walk the girls to the lounge and return to your room with instructions to them to call if they need to return to the room or to stay in lounge until you come back? That might be better than cancelling your trip.
 


I had booked a deluxe club access room for my 91 year old mom and me. I think I remember it saying that the room could be on floors 1-6 (or whichever floors they are on) when I booked it. Maybe you missed it?

In any case, when I asked around and found out they were all at the ends of the hallway, I ended up canceling the room. I will be pushing her in a wheelchair, and it wouldn't be at all convenient to get to the Old Faithful Club.

Not the same situation as yours, but I get wanting better access to the club.
 
I had booked a deluxe club access room for my 91 year old mom and me. I think I remember it saying that the room could be on floors 1-6 (or whichever floors they are on) when I booked it. Maybe you missed it?

In any case, when I asked around and found out they were all at the ends of the hallway, I ended up canceling the room. I will be pushing her in a wheelchair, and it wouldn't be at all convenient to get to the Old Faithful Club.

Not the same situation as yours, but I get wanting better access to the club.
I checked again when I found out to be sure if I had missed it ,but no, it’s not posted that you could be on floors 1-5. I also called and asked if it was posted anywhere and hey told me no. I had made the reservation over the phone anyway so it’s not even their protocol to tell the person about this.
 
I checked again when I found out to be sure if I had missed it ,but no, it’s not posted that you could be on floors 1-5. I also called and asked if it was posted anywhere and hey told me no. I had made the reservation over the phone anyway so it’s not even their protocol to tell the person about this.

Maybe I'm not remembering correctly....wouldn't be the first time. :rolleyes:
 


We stayed in a deluxe CL room at the WL once a few years ago, and while we love the WL and love CL, I tend to agree with GADisneyDad14 that the rooms being far from the lounge don't fit with our touring style. We didn't hate it, but we weren't able to utilize the lounge the way we prefer - no popping in to grab something, no running back and forth to carry for everyone, etc. This was also before they changed half to DVC, so we were way on the end of the other wing on the 4th or 5th floor. We made it work, and it wouldn't make us not stay in one (in fact, once our twins turn 3 and we become a family of 6 it will be one of the few remaining CL choices for us that don't require 2 rooms or an $$$ suite), but being on the same floor or in a more compact area (like the Poly or GF) is so much more convenient. I also agree with you on your kids. My oldest is 8, so we aren't quite where you are yet, but I completely see where you are coming from on letting them go alone. If you aren't comfortable I would say keep the room but don't have them go alone. That doesn't seem like too big of a deal to me, they just go to the lounge when you go, and you can go out of your way to stop there when you leave the room or go back to the room. I don't see anything wrong with being cautious. If you do decide to let them go alone, I would have them take a phone if that's possible (and they have a reliable place to carry it so they don't sit it down and lose it) so you can text to make sure they made it and when they are leaving so you know when to expect them back. That would just make me feel better.
 
I have a standard club level room booked- does that mean I will be on the 7th floor? Or is that something I’m going to need to request? I see the Deluxe Club Level access rooms can be on any floor but wasn’t sure about the Standard rooms.
 
This thread is a year old. is the information even still correct?
it would be best to ask your QU in a new thread
 
Just so you know, if you all would fit in a standard size room, you can add club level for $99/night at WL. That way you could request close to elevators, high floor, and most likely it'd be short elevator ride up. Now it's still a request, not guaranteed. Not sure if there are rooms available for your time, but just thought you should know.

Good advice, but he days of adding club level for $99 per night are long gone, especially during the high demand period of Christmas time. It's an additional $160 for a standard club level room during this period.

Also, unfortunately don't expect any discounts during high demand times like the fall and the holiday season. Disney is really throttling discounts when the occupancy rate is so high during the busy season.

Some people on these boards like to talk about how "easy" is is to get discounts while failing to mention that they dry up completely or are only offered on a highly limited, token basis during periods of high attendance, such as Food and Wine in the fall and the Christmas holidays.

I would try sending Guest services an email detailing your concerns. They will more than likely pass that along to the resort to see if anything can be done to assist you. There are no guarantees however.

The email for Guest services is wdw.guest.communications@disneyworld.com
Be sure to include your reservation number.

Good luck and have a fantastic vacation!

~NM

PS. Even though the question is a year old the advice might be helpful to people that have similar concerns.
 
Good advice, but he days of adding club level for $99 per night are long gone, especially during the high demand period of Christmas time. It's an additional $160 for a standard club level room during this period.

I believe the year old post you are quoting is referencing the WL CL "add-on" feature that can be done at the time of check-in if you have a standard resort room booked. It used to be $99/night, but was recently (like a month ago) increased to $130/night. You keep the room you were otherwise assigned, but are given access to the CL lounge/floor and amenities. It is by request at the time of check in and is as available.

WL is the only resort that has this CL "add-on" feature - it was implemented after over half of the original CL floor was converted to DVC as the lounge has excess capacity compared to the # of actual CL rooms it serves today.
 
I have a standard club level room booked- does that mean I will be on the 7th floor? Or is that something I’m going to need to request? I see the Deluxe Club Level access rooms can be on any floor but wasn’t sure about the Standard rooms.

Standard WL CL rooms are all on the 7th floor. They can be either MK/woods facing or courtyard facing (you can't book a view with WL CL, it's only by request). The Deluxe CL rooms are on the very end of the hallway on the northeast side of the resort - 2 per floor, floors 1-5.

Happy to answer any questions.
 
I believe the year old post you are quoting is referencing the WL CL "add-on" feature that can be done at the time of check-in if you have a standard resort room booked. It used to be $99/night, but was recently (like a month ago) increased to $130/night. You keep the room you were otherwise assigned, but are given access to the CL lounge/floor and amenities. It is by request at the time of check in and is as available.

WL is the only resort that has this CL "add-on" feature - it was implemented after over half of the original CL floor was converted to DVC as the lounge has excess capacity compared to the # of actual CL rooms it serves today.

Okie dokie. It's important to distinguish between guaranteed, pre-booked Club level access (160.00) and take your chances, maybe we have it, maybe we don't $130 per night.

I'm picturing Dirty Harry asking people if they feel lucky.

I think that during the holidays, when demand for Club level may be higher, it pays to spend the $30 additional and be sure. Another factor to consider is that if you are checking in on a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday, adding club level after arrival could be especially difficult.

I waited for over 3 months before a Standard Club Level room became available to book during early December.

Are people required to book Club Level for every day of their stay at the Wilderness lodge, either in advance or upon check in, or can they cherry pick the days that they want to have access? If it's the former then the number of Club Level days available for purchase upon check in will be even harder to obtain.

The upside is that if you have not managed to book Club Level in advance, availability may open up at the Last day people have to cancel their reservations without "penalty".

~NM
 
Are people required to book Club Level for every day of their stay at the Wilderness lodge, either in advance or upon check in, or can they cherry pick the days that they want to have access? If it's the former then the number of Club Level days available for purchase upon check in will be even harder to obtain.

You have to pay per day for your length of stay, no mixing/matching days.

FWIW they don't advertise or offer it in any way and it generally only gets mentioned on Internet message boards such as this, likely on purpose I suspect. I have yet to see a report of anyone being turned down when they request it at check in, but it's not a frequently discussed / reported detail either, so the sample size is admittedly low.

Some people like the "take my chances with the add-on" deal since the 7th floor rooms have the "dormer" balconies that some/many people seem not to like. If you book a regular room, you have a better chance of a normal balcony (which some/many seem to prefer) and the CL lounge is just a short elevator ride upstairs - so best of both worlds to some extent. It is a risk though.
 
Okie dokie. It's important to distinguish between guaranteed, pre-booked Club level access (160.00) and take your chances, maybe we have it, maybe we don't $130 per night.

I'm picturing Dirty Harry asking people if they feel lucky.

I think that during the holidays, when demand for Club level may be higher, it pays to spend the $30 additional and be sure. Another factor to consider is that if you are checking in on a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday, adding club level after arrival could be especially difficult.

Since they started offering this they haven't turned anyone away, even during the holidays and weekends.

I waited for over 3 months before a Standard Club Level room became available to book during early December.

They went from 26 of these rooms down to 13, so they are hard to find now.

Are people required to book Club Level for every day of their stay at the Wilderness lodge, either in advance or upon check in, or can they cherry pick the days that they want to have access?

It's all or nothing.
 
Since they started offering this (add on club level at check in) they haven't turned anyone away, even during the holidays and weekends.

They went from 26 of these rooms down to 13, so they are hard to find now.

It's all or nothing.

WOW!! on the not turning people away.
If I get the chance I will play detective during Club Level check in and see what the limit is on the number of people who can purchase add on access at the time of check in.

I wonder if they adjust the volume of offerings based on the number of people with Club Level access or if it is just survival of the hungriest and people circle the food like shoppers looking for a parking spot at the mall during Christmas.

~NM
 
WOW!! on the not turning people away.
If I get the chance I will play detective during Club Level check in and see what the limit is on the number of people who can purchase add on access at the time of check in.

You can ask, but others that have were not given an answer. Good luck! Inquiring minds would love to know!

I wonder if they adjust the volume of offerings based on the number of people with Club Level access or if it is just survival of the hungriest and people circle the food like shoppers looking for a parking spot at the mall during Christmas.

~NM

They do adjust.
 
Go looking for a crowded lounge and you will inevitably find one, but in my two stays at WL CL post DVC addition, it has hands down the least crowded CL lounge of anywhere we have stayed (and we have stayed at them all).
 
You can ask, but others that have were not given an answer. Good luck! Inquiring minds would love to know!
I will have to invent some kind of believable cover story that would entice them to give me the number.

Perhaps if I told them I won the jackpot at Bingo and I want to put up in Club Level my cousin Clark, his wife Ellen, the kids Audrey and Rusty, Clark Sr., Nora, Art, Cousin Eddie, Cousin Catherine, Francis, Rocky, Ruby Sue, Lewis, Bethany, Mr. Shirley and all the people from work who didn't get a Christmas bonus.

Of course Cousin Eddie will probably want to go to Ft. Wilderness but I will have to talk him out of it because I need my number to be high.

With all those people and the demise of the "Grand Gathering" planning service, I'm sure I can entice some CP into letting the Club Level max occupancy slip out.

~NM
PS I'm calling that trip report "Wilderness Lodge Christmas Vacation".
 

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